


Temple Bells

by Bricker



Category: Free!
Genre: Bottom Sousuke, M/M, Yokai AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-26
Updated: 2016-11-26
Packaged: 2018-09-02 07:02:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8655226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bricker/pseuds/Bricker
Summary: “Okay, then,” he says, already regretting what he’s about to ask. “So, weird question. You wouldn’t happen to be a… fox yokai, would you…?” 
He trails off with an awkward laugh, hoping to pass it off as a joke. Makoto just grins and nods. 
“Yeah, I am,” he replies. “I’m a kyuubi. Your grandmother warned you about my arrival, right?” 
“Wh-yes, but-” 
“Great! May I come in?”





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RinChanSanMatsuoka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RinChanSanMatsuoka/gifts).



> OKAY, last Makoto birthday exchange fill from me, I swear.   
> This is for RinChanSanMatsuoka, who had an emergency pinch hit situation! I volunteered to fill it, and I'm so grateful to them for being so patient. :')   
> RinChanSanMatsuoka asked for a Yokai/Monster AU! And I.... took it upon myself to add smut.   
> I hope you like it!

“I have an old friend visiting tonight,” Rin’s grandmother says, from where she’s stooped over the little bowl of oatmeal that Sousuke’s made for her. 

Rin and Sousuke share a glance. Here they go again. 

For the past couple of weeks, Rin, Gou, and their mother have been taking shifts staying with their oldest relative as they prepare to move her into a nursing home. She’s… not as mentally capable, as she once was. To put it mildly. Whatever she’s about to say, Rin knows it should be interesting. Or concerning, whichever comes first.

Taking care of her isn’t exactly hard, but it demands a lot of patience and strength. Sousuke’s been kind enough to tag along for moral support. Moral support, and because Rin’s grandma tends to be a lot more agreeable when he’s around.

(“Is the big handsome man coming again, Rinrin?”)

He loves his grandma to bits, but it’s tiring, spending his days off taking care of her. It’s pretty much glorified babysitting, but instead of a toddler, he’s looking after a prickly, delusional older woman with cringe-worthy political views from twenty years ago and a great interest in both knitting and Sousuke. 

Whoever this old friend is, Rin’s gonna wager a bet and guess they aren’t alive anymore. 

“Really, grandma?” Rin says, exaggerating the enthusiasm in his voice. “Who?” 

“A messenger,” she replies glibly. She pushes her spoon into the oatmeal with a slightly shaking hand. “My kyuubi.” 

“Kyuubi,” Sousuke echoes. He retracts his arms from the bubbly sink where he’s been washing dishes, leaning a hip against the counter. “Like, a fox spirit? The one with ten tails?” 

She shakes her head. “No.” 

“No?” 

“Kyuubi has nine tails. Ten tails is ridiculous. My kyuubi is younger than most, but strong and sincere. It will come tonight.”

Sousuke and Rin exchange another glance. Japanese folklore… That’s a new one. Rin’s seen the piles of books she keeps on the subject, but he’s never heard her address anything related to it. This is the first Rin’s heard of anything involving spirits or yokai. 

“Why is it coming?” he asks. 

“I have a message to give it,” she says, lifting the spoon to her chapped lips. “For Inari.” 

Okay, so a nine-tailed fox spirit is going to come tonight to collect a message for the ancient kami of agriculture and success. Terrific.

“Really,” he says, less as a question and more as a gentle statement. “Okay. So, um. When should we expect this visitor? Did you give it a specific time, or…?” 

Sousuke turns away to hide his smirk, but if Rin’s grandma notices, she doesn’t acknowledge it. “It will come when it’s dark enough to travel. It’s very polite, it’ll probably knock on the door. Rin, listen to me. Are you listening?” 

“Yes, grandma.” 

“Let it in for me. I’ll probably already be asleep. Don’t try and stop it from doing its job.” 

“Okay, grandma,” Rin says, rubbing the back of her hand comfortingly. Her skin has the consistency of tissue paper. “I’ll let the fox spirit in.” 

“Promise me, Rin,” she says, fixing him with a look. Rin can’t help but lift his eyebrows in surprise. Her eyes… actually have some of that old sharpness. Maybe she’s more put together right now than he thought. 

“I promise.” 

“Good,” she says, her narrow, bony shoulders relaxing. She slides her little hand out from under his to pat his arm. “You’re a good grandson, Rinrin.” 

He meets Sousuke’s eyes again. Sousuke’s still obviously trying to stifle his amusement, so he must not have caught what Rin did. Or was there even something to catch at all? Maybe Rin had imagined it… She’s talking about ancient fox spirits, after all. How collected can she really be? 

“Eiji, I like this oatmeal,” she says suddenly, glancing up at Sousuke to give him a cracked smile. “But you forgot the blueberries.” 

Sousuke’s amused expression twists into one of gentle fondness. He nods. “Right. Silly me.” 

“You always forget, Eiji.” 

“Sorry, I’ll get you some blueberries right now.” 

“Thank you,” she says. She pats Rin’s arm again. “Your grandfather is always so forgetful, Rinrin.” 

 

\---o0o---

 

“Alright, the eagle has officially landed,” Rin jokes, clapping his hands together as he strides into the living room. It took maybe twenty minutes to get his grandma changed for bed and under the covers, and ten more to endure the story she decided to tell him for the thousandth time. Something about acrobats and monkey tamers… He’s not too sure. It seems to get more complex every night. He flops down on the couch next to Sousuke with a groan. “Hopefully she won’t get up again.”

“And if she does, hopefully it will be with some clothes on,” Sousuke says, switching the channel on the little TV across from them to a cooking show. Rin winces. The image of his naked grandma shuffling into her kitchen late at night a few days ago is still burned into the back of his eyelids. He wants to squirt shampoo into his eyes to try and kill the sight just thinking about it. 

“I’m so ready for her to go to the nursing home,” he says. “Like, I love her, and all, but I can’t stand this. She obviously needs help that Gou and I can’t give, and I’m going to be in serious trouble if I take any more days off. The sooner she’s in a home, the better.” 

“Hey, I don’t blame you,” Sousuke says. “This has been tough. I never knew taking care of old people would be so strenuous.” 

“And we’re only looking after one. Imagine what the staff at the nursing home go through.” 

“Fuck, I don’t even want to think about that,” Sousuke groans, rubbing his eyes, and Rin laughs. “It’s so depressing, knowing that’s going to be us one day.” 

“Don’t even start, man.” 

“Maybe I’ll take a bullet to the chest one of these days and die young,” Sousuke muses. “To be honest, after this, I’m not sure which I’d prefer.” 

Rin gives him a look. “Hey. You don’t mean that.” 

“I might. I mean, what’s the alternative? Get so old I don’t even have the mental capacity to wish for death? Sounds like a lot of pain to endure, just for the sake of saying I died in my sleep. We’re officers, Rin. I could die a hero.” 

“You could die an arrogant idiot,” Rin corrects. 

“Better an idiot than a shell,” Sousuke says, and suddenly his voice doesn’t sound so light. Rin watches him out of the corner of his eye as he takes a sip of cola, a little more than concerned. 

“Hey,” he says. 

“Hm?” 

“Stop talking like that. It’s freaking me out.” 

“Oh?” Sousuke lowers the can and smirks. “Careful, you might give off the impression that you’re actually fond of me, Rinrin.” 

“Don’t call me that,” Rin growls, and Sousuke snorts. “Well, if you’re so bent on dying like a martyr, at least tell me, so we can go together. No way in hell am I growing old knowing your smug ass took a bullet for the sake of convenience.” 

Sousuke gives a surprised burst of laughter. “Deal.” 

“Swear on your cola.” 

“I swear on my cola, Rin.” 

“Good,” Rin says with a tone of finality, slumping back against the soft cushions of the couch. They watch the cooking show in comfortable silence for a while, (they both scoff when some chick tries to blend chicken nuggets and barbecue sauce while crying,) before Rin speaks up again. “Hey. Thanks, for helping out with this. You really don’t have to.” 

“I want to,” Sousuke replies easily. He leans back, so they’re shoulder to shoulder. “Believe it or not, I kinda want to help you out sometimes. Besides, you’d do the same for me.” 

Rin lets out a disbelieving puff of laughter. “I don’t know about that, Sousuke. This has been pretty shitty for the both of us.” 

“You would. I have faith sometimes that you’re not actually the spawn of Satan.” 

“I am totally the spawn of Satan, how dare you.” 

“Mm-hm. Last week you made me stop in the middle of the road so you could help a turtle get to the sidewalk.”

“I may be the spawn of Satan, but I’m not a monster,” Rin snaps. “And that’s… really not the point. The point is I’m thanking you, so let’s focus on that.” 

“Alright,” Sousuke says good-naturedly, although he looks much too pleased with himself for Rin’s liking. “You’re welcome, Rin. Happy to help.” 

Rin narrows his eyes at him. “You’re probably doing this so I’ll have to cash in the favor later, right? Or so you can get off work.” 

“No, I’m genuinely doing this because I want to help,” Sousuke laughs. He nudges Rin’s knee with his own. “Is that so hard to believe?” 

“Liar.” 

“I swear I’m not lying to you. I swear on my cola.” 

“You already swore on that.” 

“Then I swear on my dog’s life.” 

“Shit man, that’s serious,” Rin says, lifting his eyebrows. “You really mean it, then?” 

“Rin, you’re a pain in my ass sometimes, but I don’t want you to be overwhelmed by anything,” Sousuke says, shrugging a shoulder. “And your grandma was a big part of my childhood, too. I want to show my gratitude for how she always put up with me, especially whenever we barged in as teenagers.” 

Rin shakes his head, grinning. “Those were the fuckin’ days.” 

Sousuke hums in solemn agreement, which makes Rin laugh. They make eye contact, wearing matching tired grins. Rin’s suddenly overwhelmed by how stupidly attractive his best friend is, so much so that he stares for an inappropriately long time. He feels his smile fade. Sousuke meets his gaze evenly. Rin can feel him tracing the features of his face, hesitating over his lips. His heart flutters, and one question suddenly occupies his mind, resonating through the rest of him; is Sousuke going to…?

Before Sousuke can so much as shift forward to answer the question for him, there’s a knock at the door. They both startle, leaning away. 

“Who the fuck,” Rin mumbles under his breath. He peels himself off the couch and jogs over to the front door, positive his heart is going to punch its way through his chest. Did he imagine what just happened? Sousuke was totally about to kiss him just now, wasn’t he?

“Who is it?” Sousuke calls after him from the couch. 

“No idea.” 

“Your grandma’s fox yokai?” 

Rin lets out a nervous burst of laughter, making quick work of the door’s locks. “Maybe.” 

He opens the door, not entirely sure what to expect. 

What he doesn’t expect is what he’s met with: a young, tall guy in ripped jeans and a white t-shirt, with a face so overwhelmingly attractive Rin utters a “whoa,” before he can stop himself. 

The guy lifts an eyebrow at the reaction, but otherwise doesn’t seem all that surprised. He beams, and Rin can’t help but take a little step back, feeling like he has to shield himself from how bright it is. 

“Hi,” he says, giving Rin a polite nod. 

“Uh, hey,” Rin manages to mumble back. There’s a beat of awkward silence, before Rin clears his throat to break it. He tries to gather himself as subtly as possible. “Can I help you…?” 

“Yes, I’m here to see Ena,” the guy says breezily. “I take it you’re her grandson?” 

“Yeah…” What the fuck, she really does have a visitor; although he looks painfully human. How the hell does she know this guy? And how did she get in touch with him? She can barely eat celery without supervision, much less call up an “old friend” and invite him over. 

“My name is Makoto,” the guy says. Instead of offering his hand, like any normal person would, he gives a slight bow. “I’m here to collect a message your grandmother has for me.” 

“A message?” Rin echoes. He’s vaguely aware of Sousuke standing and hesitantly approaching from behind to listen better. “What sort of message?” 

The guy- or Makoto - gives an apologetic smile. “I don’t know. I’m just here to take it away.” 

Rin’s not entirely sure how to respond to that. He looks back at Sousuke for some sort of reassurance, but Sousuke seems much too busy looking Makoto up and down to be of any help. Rin gives up on him and turns back to Makoto, making a weak, unsure sound in the back of his throat. 

“Okay, then,” he says, already regretting what he’s about to ask. “So, weird question. You wouldn’t happen to be a… fox yokai, would you…?” 

He trails off with an awkward laugh, hoping to pass it off as a joke. Makoto just grins and nods. 

“Yeah, I am,” he replies. “I’m a kyuubi. Your grandmother warned you about my arrival, right?” 

“Wh-yes, but-” 

“Great! May I come in?” 

“Uh, sure,” Rin says, not entirely sure what else he can say. Makoto steps inside after him, his hands casually in his pockets. He turns his attention towards Sousuke, who jumps under his gaze and quickly looks away, a touch of color in the tips of his ears. Some voice at the back of Rin’s mind tells him that he should be jealous, especially after the near-kiss he and Sousuke just shared, but honestly? Rin doesn’t blame Sousuke in the slightest. He’d probably be a little less forgiving if he weren’t side-eying this stranger himself.   
“I didn’t get your name,” Makoto says suddenly, catching Rin off guard. 

“Oh,” Rin says in a quiet voice. He clears his throat and speaks up. “I’m Rin.” 

“Sousuke,” Sousuke adds when Makoto looks to him. 

“Nice to meet you both. Sorry for the intrusion, I’ll be out of here in no time-” 

“No worries,” Rin bursts, and immediately wants to kick himself for cutting him off. Thankfully Makoto doesn’t look too bothered, so he follows up fast, feeling a little desperate to fill the silence. “So, you’re an old friend of my grandma?” 

Makoto nods. “Yeah. Ena and I go way back.” 

“Really,” Sousuke says, giving him another, more suspicious once-over. 

Makoto lifts an eyebrow at him. “Is that hard to believe?”

“Well, uh.” Sousuke looks like he might regret saying anything at all. “Sort of.”

“How so?” 

Sousuke lets out a bit of uneasy laughter. “It’s just funny, thinking Rin’s little grandma goes way back with a guy in his twenties.” 

Makoto blinks blankly at him for a moment, before snorting, as if Sousuke’s description of him is an object of great hilarity. “Right, okay. Sure.” 

Rin and Sousuke share an alarmed look at that response. “Wait, what-” 

“I’d like to see Ena now,” Makoto interrupts politely. He breezes past them both and heads down the hallway that leads to her bedroom. How he knows his way around the house is beyond Rin, and slightly concerning. “Thank you for inviting me in. I’ll just be a moment.” 

“W-wait a second,” Rin flounders, jogging after him. He catches Makoto by the arm. Wow, that’s some muscle. No, don’t think about that, Rin. One thing at a time. “You can’t go in there. She’s sleeping.”

“Yes, I’m aware,” Makoto says. He pries Rin’s hand off of his bicep with a tight, impatient smile. “I won’t wake her, I promise. It’ll only take a second. You can watch, if you want… As long as you don’t interfere.” 

“Interfere with what?” Rin says, but Makoto’s already turning away to push into his grandma’s bedroom. Sousuke comes to stand at Rin’s side, staring after him in confusion. 

“Maybe when your grandma said fox, she meant foxy…?” Sousuke says weakly. Rin’s not sure if it’s meant to be a joke or an actual concern. He decides to ignore it, shakes his head twice, and slides into the room after Makoto. 

This is all sorts of weird, and part of him is saying he should prepare to protect his tiny, sleeping grandmother from this very questionable, very sexy young man, who’s about to do god knows what. If this somehow does turn into a fight, at least he can feel Sousuke follow behind him. Two against one, not bad. 

His grandma is sleeping on her back, her sharp chin tilted up towards the ceiling and one bony hand laid over her chest. The pink curlers in her patchy hair are looser than they were when Rin put her to bed a while ago. Her snores are the only sound filling the room as Makoto approaches her bed, sidestepping around the foot to place himself on the side opposite of Rin and Sousuke. He studies her sleeping, frail form with oddly open fondness, fondness that almost makes Rin believe that they’re old friends. The corners of his lips turn up when she snorts in her sleep, as if he’s watching a dozing puppy instead of Rin’s mind-addled, oldest relative. 

“Ena,” he says in a whisper. There’s sadness underlying his tone. “You look so much weaker, now.” 

Silence and soft snores greet his words. Rin purses his lips, not entirely sure what to do but stand and watch warily. 

Makoto presses two fingers to lips, lowers them to graze her hollowed, drooping cheek. Golden light blossoms across her skin where they touch. Rin blinks a couple times to make sure he didn’t imagine it, a weak sound pressing to the back of his throat that he barely catches. It must be more than a figment of his imagination, because he feels Sousuke tense against him and whisper, “the fuck.” 

Makoto lifts his fingers back to his face, pressing them against his nose. He closes his eyes and slowly extends his arm towards the ceiling, whispering a language Rin doesn’t know, before pressing his free hand flat against his sternum. His clothes suddenly begin to change, growing rich in color and falling like layered sheets across his broad form. His face is slowly obstructed by a white mask that seems to come from nowhere. It crawls over his messy hair to point towards the ceiling with two ears, its lower half covering the rest of his face with a white muzzle that points toward the floor. 

Rin breathes an alarmed curse under his breath, because suddenly Makoto is wearing a yukata that glows with rippling shades of green, and a kitsune mask - the white, red-streaked mask of a fox spirit.

What the actual living fuck. 

Makoto lowers his hand to touch his grandma’s forehead, and another burst of golden light shines through his skin. The fingers that touched her lift to press against his throat, and the fabric of his yukata ripples violently, making Sousuke and Rin take a startled step back. Makoto whispers something under his breath as his robes settle, and the whole room seems to cool. 

He holds his hands out, the fingers of one hand grazing the palm of his other, and wrenches them apart. The yukata and mask disappear suddenly, as if thrown into another plain of existence, and Makoto’s left in the white t-shirt and jeans from before. 

“There,” he breathes, his arms drifting down to rest again at his sides. The expressions on Sousuke and Rin’s faces must be pretty funny, because his solemn expression cracks with a grin when he meets their eyes. “I told you it would only take a second.” 

“Wh-” Sousuke begins, then stops sharply, shaking his head as if to clear it. “Okay, what the fuck.” 

“What did you just do?” Rin croaks. 

“I gathered Ena’s message,” Makoto walks back around the bed, and Sousuke and Rin scramble out of his way. He gives them both a concerned look before taking advantage of the space to lead the way out into the hall. “I told you, I’m a kyuubi. My job is to deliver messages to Inari, and Ena had one for me to pick up.” 

“What the actual fuck.” 

“Did that really just happen?” Sousuke mumbles. Whether he’s genuinely asking or talking to himself, Rin’s not too sure. 

Makoto laughs. It sounds like temple bells. “Yes, it did.” 

Sousuke blanches. “Oh, god.” 

“So you’re really a…” Rin drifts off, looking him up and down again with new awe. Or horror. He hasn’t really decided yet. “No, that’s. That’s impossible. There’s no such thing as yokai.” 

“Agree to disagree,” Makoto says, much too comfortably. 

Rin gives a puff of humorless laughter, shaking a finger up at him. “No, no, no, you’re not allowed to say that, as if it’s a joke. I’m serious, man. Yokai aren’t real.” 

Makoto’s smile falls. He narrows his eyes at him. “What makes you say that?” 

“There’s… no scientific evidence behind it,” Rin insists feebly. 

“But you just saw me use my powers.” 

“I… didn’t. I couldn’t have. It’s not real. I imagined it.” 

Makoto looks to Sousuke. “Did you imagine it?” 

“You summoned a fucking yukata just now, of course I saw it,” Sousuke replies, and Rin has to say, he feels a little betrayed. 

Makoto gives him a good-natured smile. “See? Sousuke thinks I’m real. Rin, I promise you I’m serious, too. Would I have been able to do something like that if I wasn’t?” 

“W-well…” Rin begins, but trails off. For once, he’s not sure he’d like to argue with someone right now, especially not with Makoto, who obviously has the upper hand with his golden touch kitsune yukata voodoo. 

Makoto gives a hum of appreciation at Rin’s unspoken defeat. “Do you mind if I have a drink of water? Collecting messages kinda wears me out.” 

“Sure,” Rin says in a small voice. He doesn’t move for a moment, and that moment is filled with awkward silence, before he forces himself to take a readying breath and lead the way into the kitchen. Makoto and Sousuke follow, Makoto idly inspecting the picture frames on the wall as they go and Sousuke looking so pale Rin’s a little worried he’s going to keel over. 

In the kitchen, Makoto and Sousuke take a seat on the stools beside the island, and Rin slips around them to reach for the cupboard where the cups are kept. His fingers shake, making the glasses clink against each other when he grasps one.

“Is tap okay?” he croaks, turning towards the sink. For some reason it’s crucial he avoids Makoto and Sousuke’s eyes. He has just enough time to ask himself why before he feels the prick of tears and immediately thinks, ‘fuck.’ Now is NOT the time to cry, Rin. Sure, he just witnessed something unexplainable and has no idea what the fuck is going on, but he is not about to break down in front of Sousuke and some beautiful, magical fox-man, dammit. Weird shit like this happens all the time in movies, it’s nothing to get worked up about. 

“Sure,” Makoto says. His gaze presses to Rin’s back as he twists the sink’s knob and holds the glass under the faucet. He stalls, filling the cup up all the way before pouring the contents down the drain and filling it again. 

His eyes must be a little red when he turns around, because Makoto’s gaze is soft as he accepts the glass. “Thank you, Rin.” 

“No problem,” Rin all but snaps, but Makoto doesn’t so much as flinch. 

“It’s okay to be overwhelmed,” he says. Rin loathes the gentle kindness in his voice. “It’s probably not everyday you meet a fox spirit.” 

Rin lets out a bitter burst of laughter. “Nah, not really.” 

“You’ve reacted much better than some other people I’ve encountered, you know. I’ve had things thrown at me and wooden crosses waved in my face more times than I can count. Sometimes people have guns, too…Or knives. Neither of you have tried to kill me with a ninja star, so I already like you guys.” 

“You have pretty low standards,” Sousuke observes in a weak voice. Makoto laughs against the rim of his drink. 

“I do, I admit. Being a messenger of a kami in this day and age is definitely messy, in my defense.” 

“Do you do this often?” Rin asks. The lump in his throat refuses to leave. “Visit little old ladies in the middle of the night and do…. whatever it is you just did?” 

“No, not really.” Makoto shrugs a shoulder. “I don’t have much business with mortals, these days. Most of the time I deliver messages between kami and yokai. Ena is an exception.” 

Rin and Sousuke exchange a hesitant look. “Why?” 

“I knew her when she was very young,” Makoto says, swirling the water in his cup idly. “When she was a little girl, her family visited a shrine I frequented a lot. Children are always much more agreeable than older humans, so I let her befriend me. We grew close as she grew up, and have been good friends ever since, even though work usually has me moving around a lot.” His gaze softens, and he meets Rin’s eyes. “She was very beautiful in her youth. You look a lot like her.” 

Rin’s not sure how to respond to that. He feels his face heat up, and scrambles for something to say. “What, were you in love with her, or something?” 

Dammit. Nice one, Rin. 

“No,” Makoto laughs. “No, I don’t think we ever loved each other like that. She was always much more interested in girls, even after her arranged marriage. We were just friends.” 

Well, then. That’s a lot to process. Not only did Rin just learn that his grandma was a participant in an arranged marriage, but she’s also apparently a lesbian.  
No wonder she wasn’t all that troubled when both of her grandchildren came out as gay a while back. 

Sousuke rubs his temple with a quiet groan. “Hold on, Rin’s grandma is gay?” 

“You didn’t know?” Makoto asks in alarm, looking between them. “Oh shit, whoops. Sorry, forget I said that.” 

Rin just sighs. All these realizations are starting to get tiring. “Are there any other huge secrets you should let me in on?” 

Makoto winces. “Nope. None for you, at least.” 

“This is so fucked up,” Sousuke says under his breath. 

Makoto looks a little hurt at that. “I’m sorry. Do you guys need a second? I can go into the other room…” 

“No, no, I’d rather not leave you unsupervised in my grandmother’s house,” Rin grumbles. 

Makoto wilts, and that almost makes Rin feel bad. “I was just trying to be considerate. It’s not like I’d do anything. You’re Ena’s family, and this is her house. I have no interest in causing trouble for her.” 

“Yeah, well. Excuse me for not trusting you, after you summoned a yukata and made my sleeping grandma turn gold. Besides, aren’t fox spirits supposed to be mischievous?” 

Makoto frowns down at his cup. “That is an unfair stereotype.”

Sousuke actually laughs. “That’s funny.” 

“I don’t think so,” Makoto says quietly. “It’s worse with the Chinese, though. They used to think all fox spirits were man-eaters. Not all fox spirits do that…” 

“But some do.” 

“Well, yeah…” 

That’s… concerning. Thankfully Rin isn’t given much time to dwell on it, because Sousuke speaks up again and offers a distraction. 

“Wait, but if you’re a kyuubi, then shouldn’t you be able to appear as either a man or a woman to seduce people?” Sousuke asks. He leans back to study Makoto suspiciously. “If Rin’s grandma is really gay, then why didn’t you just turn into a woman for her?”

Makoto gives him a weird look. “She was my friend. I didn’t want to seduce her.” 

“But...you can really change genders?” 

“Sure. I mean, if I were really desperate to seduce someone, I could appear as whatever I like. But I like being a man. If I’m not a fox, that is.” 

This conversation is the equivalent of watching a car crash unfold, but neither Rin nor Sousuke seem too keen on stopping. “What gender are you when you’re a fox?” 

Makoto opens his mouth to respond, then closes it. He tilts his head to the side in thought, his brows coming together. After a couple seconds of what appears to be serious contemplation, he seems to call a quits and shrugs. “I don’t know. When I’m a fox, I’m in my pure spirit form, and spirits have no need for reproduction. So no gender. Or… all genders…. I’m not sure.” 

“That’s weird.”

Makoto shrugs. “Mortals worry about that sort of thing too much anyways, in my opinion.”

“Well… Okay. Fine. That’s fair,” Rin concedes, which makes Makoto give a little nod of approval as he takes another drink. “But why did you appear as a human to us at all? If you just needed to pick up my grandma’s message, you didn’t need to seduce anybody. You could’ve just come in your fox form, right?” 

“Sure, but I didn’t think you’d let me in if the first time you saw me I was a nine-tailed fox on your doorstep. I was trying to be considerate.” Makoto meets Rin’s eyes and grins. He has the gall to wink. “And who says I’m not looking to seduce somebody tonight?” 

Rin’s eyebrows shoot up. He looks over at Sousuke, who looks just as taken aback. 

“Wait a second,” he says hesitantly. He studies Makoto’s face for any crack in his casual resolve, but comes up short. “Did you just admit to wanting to seduce me?” 

Makoto’s smile widens. It’s much too innocent for the topic at hand. 

“I was actually hoping to seduce you both…? It’s not often that I get to talk to mortals as attractive as you two. Besides.” He leans forward, propping his chin up in his hands and meeting Rin’s gaze evenly, despite a touch of color in his cheeks. “I get this sense that I might’ve interrupted something earlier, and I feel pretty bad about that, so I’m willing to make it up to you.” 

Sousuke coughs uncomfortably, color rising to his face. He avoids Rin’s gaze when Rin dares a glance at him. If that’s not confirmation that there was in fact something going on between them before Makoto showed up, Rin doesn’t know what is. 

Rin gulps. The clever thing to say right about now would be something like: “the both of us? You think you can handle that?” Because okay, he admits the thought of somebody as hot as Makoto showing an interest in not only him but also Sousuke is pretty convenient. Even if this somebody happens to be some sort of fox spirit.   
For some reason, though, Rin can’t bring himself to say that, or anything along those lines. He tries to meet Makoto’s unwavering, amused gaze to the best of his ability, but it’s really, really hard when he’s screaming in panic on the inside and Sousuke is fidgeting and creating a huge distraction in his peripheral vision. 

So, because he’s an idiot who knows next to nothing about yokai, Rin says, (more like croaks,) something else: “Are you going to steal our souls?” 

There’s a beat of silence. Before he knows what’s happening, Makoto’s drawing away, letting out a surprised burst of laughter that sounds like wind chimes in a storm. 

“No, gods, no,” he says. He shakes his head, as if the thought is absolutely fucking hilarious. “Oh my gods, I promise I won’t steal your soul, Rin. I’m so sorry if I made you feel like I was, what a horrible thing to think.” 

“What about my soul?” Sousuke asks in a quiet voice, which makes Makoto fall into another fit of giggles. Rin cracks a smile of his own, his shoulders drooping in relief.

“I won’t steal yours either, Sousuke,” Makoto informs him, once he’s composed himself. He wipes his eyes, grinning to himself. “Oh, man. I haven’t stolen someone’s soul in centuries, how rude would it be to break that streak with Ena’s grandson and his friend?” 

Rin chokes on nothing. “Wh-excuse me? Centuries? You’ve-?” 

“I wish I could say I’ve never stolen someone’s soul at all, but sometimes it can’t be helped, you know? Humans can be very nasty, and I’m sworn to follow Inari, so sometimes things get… messy.” 

“What the-” 

“But we don’t have to talk about that,” Makoto says. He lifts his legs up, grabs his ankles, and crosses them on the stool, like Rin used to when he was a little kid waiting for his grandma to hand him a popsicle. It looks a lot funnier when Makoto does it, though. His legs are much too long. “I swear I won’t steal your souls. I like you, I think you’re both very sweet. Even if you do swear a lot.” 

Rin’s not entirely ready to move off of the soul thing, but he gives a little nod. “Okay. Good. Just wondering.” 

“But anyways,” Makoto continues, setting his glass aside. “About seducing you.” 

“Seducing us both,” Sousuke says, more like a statement, but the hesitant tilt of his eyebrows makes it a question. 

Makoto grins. “Yes, seducing you both.” 

“Hm.” Sousuke regards him with a troubled expression. “You know, I think you lied to us earlier.” 

Makoto’s face falls. “What? No, I promise you I-” 

“You said foxes being mischevious was just a stereotype… You do realize that you’re openly admitting you’d like to seduce your old friend’s grandson and his best friend, right? Simultaneously, no less. ‘Mischievous’ isn’t the first word I’d use to describe something like that, but it sure as hell applies.” 

“Oh.” Makoto relaxes, his easy smile returning. He gives an embarrassed laugh. “I suppose you’re right. There must be some truth to that stereotype, then.” 

“This is crazy,” Sousuke decides. “And it’s probably not a good idea to trust a yokai, especially after that whole stealing souls thing, but…” He casts an uncertain look over at Rin. “You are incredibly attractive.” 

Rin lifts an eyebrow. He can’t tell if that last part was directed at him or Makoto, or maybe even both of them. His face flushes regardless, and he forces himself to meet Sousuke’s gaze evenly. Who knows how this night might’ve gone if Makoto hadn’t shown up. Makoto seems more than willing to help them pick up where they left off, and honestly, Rin’s not sure how to feel about that, but just a glance at Makoto is enough to confirm Sousuke makes a compelling point. 

“I’m glad you feel that way,” Makoto muses, and the fucker actually wets his lips. Sousuke’s gaze drops to his mouth in record time. His throat works with a swallow. Rin’s suddenly overwhelmed with how good they look, sitting next to each other like that, and his mind kindly supplies him with other… situations, they’d look good in. 

Naked situations.

He jolts, suddenly very aware that the two of them are looking at him expectantly, like two dogs waiting for permission to run ahead. Heat balls up in his chest and drops heavy to his abdomen when he glances between them: Makoto’s hooded, brilliant gaze and Sousuke’s familiar, hesitant eyes that seem to flash with boy-like curiosity. 

They’re waiting for him to respond. Makoto probably waits for some confirmation of his participation, while Sousuke waits for his permission; Rin knows that at any show of discomfort on his part, Sousuke will immediately back out. It’s comforting to know, through all the fucking uncertainty of whatever the hell is happening right now. 

But Rin doesn’t want Sousuke to back out. He looks at Makoto, at the effortless beauty of his face that goes with just about everything else Rin’s seen of him yet, and decides that, yokai or not, he’d really like to see this guy naked. With Rin’s naked, sinfully hot best friend, preferably. 

“Fuck it,” he breathes, and gathers Makoto’s shirt in his fist to yank him over the counter for a kiss. Makoto grunts in surprise, but doesn’t pull away. He lifts a hand to cup Rin’s neck, the tips of his fingers curling in his hair, and Rin shudders, because holy shit does it feel good to kiss someone after months of being by himself. 

Makoto’s mouth is gone much too fast. Rin opens his eyes to snap a demand for those lips to be back on his, but his voice promptly dies in his throat, because now Makoto and Sousuke are kissing and Rin has a front row seat to all the fantastically sinful things their tongues are doing with each other. 

“Rin,” Sousuke rasps, once Makoto’s ducked his head to suck at his throat. The way Makoto’s hands drag down Sousuke’s body is mesmerizing. Rin can feel the stretch of his t-shirt underneath the pressure of Makoto’s palms in the form of a shiver going down his spine. Sousuke’s eyes are terribly dark when he forces himself to look away. “Guestroom?” 

“Yes,” Rin blurts. He sidesteps around the island, grabs the two of them by the collars of their shirts, and drags them out of the kitchen, ignoring Makoto’s yelp of surprise and Sousuke’s smug look. 

They’re already stripping when a worrying thought makes Rin pause his battle with his belt. 

“Wait a second,” he says, straightening. 

“Mm?” Makoto tugs his shirt over his head before looking up at him, and holy fuck is his chest a distraction. Focus, Rin. 

“You’re. Not gonna turn into a nine-tailed fox in the middle of sex, right…?” 

Sousuke freezes, his pants stopping half-way down his thighs. He glances worriedly at Makoto, and for a tense half a second, both he and Rin seem to be experiencing the same dread.

Makoto snorts. Thankfully he looks very self-assured. “No, Rin. I’m not going to turn into a fox.” 

Sousuke and Rin both immediately relax. 

“Just checking.” 

 

\---o0o---

 

All things considered, it’s not the worst night Rin’s ever had. 

Sure, he got a scare. A hot guy doing ancient Japanese magic in your grandma’s frilly bedroom isn’t the best of scenarios, he’ll readily admit. But getting a blowjob from your sexy best friend as he’s being fucked from behind by previously mentioned hot guy isn’t that bad. 

Rin comes quite a bit before either Sousuke or Makoto. In his defense, he hasn’t gotten laid in a long time, and Sousuke is deceptively good at giving head. Rin mentally gives him extra points for being able to do so with Makoto’s cock up his ass. 

Coming before either of them has its perks, though. It means Rin can sit back and enjoy with a much clearer perspective. 

Sousuke’s arms are hugging him around the waist, his face buried in his lap as he moans a tapestry of Rin and Makoto’s names, along with an extra helping of curses and pleas to God. The curve of his back is breathtaking. How his spine is able to handle such an exaggerated angle is beyond Rin, but he’s definitely enjoying it. Makoto seems to, as well, if the way his hands drag and grasp before hooking at Sousuke’s hips is anything to go by. 

Makoto, meanwhile, manages to still look like the son of fucking Aphrodite as his hips snap and his hair is flicked out of the way, and it simultaneously turns Rin on and makes him very angry. Looking that good during sex isn’t fair. Rin doesn’t care that he’s a yokai, it just isn’t. Makoto must really be a spirit of mischief, if he can make Rin thirst for a round two while making him irrationally angry at the same time. What an asshole. 

Sousuke cries out when he comes, and Makoto follows seconds behind, his hips stuttering as he bends over Sousuke’s back. He pulls out and slumps back on his heels with a breathless grin that is just as unfair as he rest of him. Sousuke’s body sags down to the bed, groaning into Rin’s thigh. 

“You alright?” Rin laughs, rubbing his back. “That was quite the enthusiastic orgasm. Probably took a lot out of you, huh?” 

Sousuke’s only response is a cruel pinch to Rin’s ass, making him yelp. 

“Oof.” Makoto leans back into the pillows, stretching his long legs out from under him. They’re hairless, Rin notices. Most of him is, actually. Huh. Does he shave, or do fox spirits just have human bodies constantly prepped for the art of seduction? The more Rin learns about this guy, the more he’s convinced he’s actually an incubus, not the cute, fluffy little messenger of a kami. 

“Well, you got what you wanted,” Sousuke says after a while. He rolls out of Rin’s lap and closes his eyes, the corners of his mouth tilting up. “Consider us seduced, kyuubi.” 

Makoto hums contently, and actually pats himself on the shoulder. “Still got it.” 

“Ha. Next time, though,” Rin says. “I’d like to see you getting fucked.” 

“Oh?” Makoto smiles innocently and lifts an eyebrow. “Is there going to be a next time, Rin?” 

Shit. 

“There could be a next time, right?” Sousuke says, because he’s an actual angel. He sits up with a grimace. “Like you said. It’s not often you meet a couple of mortals as attractive as us.” 

Makoto laughs. “I did say that, didn’t I?” 

“Pretty sure you did,” Rin contributes. 

“Mm, I guess I have no choice but to come back, then,” Makoto says, faking a disappointed sigh. 

Rin slinks over to slump down beside him and rub up his toned stomach. “What a shame.”

 

\---o0o---

 

Makoto leaves at dawn. 

He was going to leave without waking them, but thankfully Rin felt the bed creak when he stood up, so now he has no choice but to let them see him off.   
Rin and Sousuke watch from the porch as he casually wanders off towards the woods, his hands in the pockets of his jeans. It’s dewy and cool this morning, and Makoto looks like a part of the scenery, the wind buffeting his hair and his nose tilted up towards the egg shell sky. 

“You think he’ll really come back?” Sousuke says. 

Rin shrugs a shoulder. “Maybe. He better, before I convince myself I made it all up.” 

“I don’t know, he left a pretty lasting impression,” Sousuke says, rubbing his ass. 

Rin scoffs. “Big baby.” 

Sousuke hums in acknowledgement. He drops a hand from his hip, and Rin doesn’t hesitate to take it. Their fingers twine. Something flutters in Rin’s chest, and he can’t suppress a shiver. 

The pleased smirk Sousuke gives him nearly makes Rin want to pull away. “Cold?” 

“Shut up,” he grumbles, and Sousuke laughs. 

When they look back out from the porch, Makoto’s tall figure is gone. In his place stands a little white fox, it's round ears perked up towards the sky. From it’s spine blossoms fluffy tails; nine, Rin counts. 

The tails wave, and it reminds Rin of a lotus in the wind.


End file.
